Blast-furnace.



E. E. SUCK.

BLAST FURNACE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 29.1914.

Patented May 21, 1918.

WI T/VESSES EDWIN E. SLICK, 0F WESTMONT BOROUGH, PENNSYLVANIA.

BLAEiT-JEURNACE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 2-1, fl ifi.

Application filed June 29, 1914. Serial No. 847,835.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWIN SLICK, a citizen of the United States,residing in the borough of VVestmont, in the county of Gambria and Stateof Pennsylvania, (whose post-oflice address is Johnstown, Pennsylvania,)have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Blast-Furnaces; andI do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to improvements in blast furnaces with specialreference to the top portion thereof, whereby the stock charged thereinis distnbuted.

One of the essential parts of the construction of a blast furnace is thetop thereof, whereby the materials which are charged therein, such ascoke, ore, limestone, or other fluxes, are deposited in the upper partof the stack portion of the furnace in such a way as to produce the bestresults in reduction and smelting.

I have found by actual trial and experimentation that it is exceedinglydesirable to distribute the charge in approximately uniform layers,providing, however, certain cleavage planes and arrangements of mlnorconcentrations whereby the ma]or portion of thecross section of thestack, including the charge at any point, is more uniformly subjected tothe reducing action of the gases and fuels. Under certaln pr1orconditions of the arrangement of bells and hoppers of blast furnaces,the stock is distributed in layers, that is, with a large part of thefines in one place and a large part of the coarse material in otherplaces, in sucha way that the gases passing therethrough follow thelines of least resistance and socalled chimneys are formed through thecharge, with the result that a blast furnace does not produce an outputcorresponding to its size or desired capacity.

By means of my apparatus these difliculties are obviated and I obtain adistribution of the stock such that the largest possible proportion ofthe cross section of the blast furnace is operative in all parts, without the tendency to the formation of deposits on the walls, localchimneys through the charge, and my arrangement also prevents hanging,slips and scaffolds.

My arrangement is also such that lines of cleavage are formed in thevarious layers of stock so that when the layers below setdue to theoperation of the furnace, the charge above them gradually breaks on itscleavage lines, allowing the whole mass to settle with reasonableuniformity and thereby preserve the desired arrangement.

Having thus given a general description of my invention, 1 will now, inorder to make the matter more clear, refer to the accompanying sheet ofdrawings which form part of this specification and in which likecharacters refer to like parts.

Figure 1 is a vertical transverse sectional elevation of the top portionof a blast furnace showing the application of my invention. 4

Fig. 2 is a top lan view of the surface of the materials a or they arecharged into the furnace, showing the conformation or the manner inwhich they are distributed.

Fig. 3 is a top plan View of the distributer detached, and

Fig. l is a detail in side elevation of one of the sections of thedistributer, showing the inner face thereof.

Referring now to the characters of reference:--1 indicates the top ofthe furnace generally, 2 the upper or receiving hopper, and 3 the loweror charging hopper. 4 represents a small distributing bell and 5 is thelarge charging bell. A small bell seat ring is indicated as 6; 7indicates a seal ring for the large charging bell, while 8 indicates mydistributor in general. 9 are the fingers of my distributer, 10 theopenings in, or spaces between, the same, and 11 indicates the topflange of the distributor. A flanged shelf upon which the hopper 3rests, is indicated as 12. 13 indicates inner flanges for securingtogether the sections of the distributer;

14 are bolt holes in the flanges 13, while 15 cates ore and 21 coke andlimestone, as deposited in the blast furnace. 22 are small piles of oreor finer materials around the sides of the blast furnace, and 23indicates the low point between small piles 22 and 111 front of thesame. 24 indicates the central low point of the charge and 25 theintermediate high point of the charge between 23 and 24.

In the charging of blast furnaces, succes- SiXB quantities of coke, oreand limestone are fed therein through the distributing and chargingbells. When the receiving hopper of my arrangement has obtained acharge, the charging bell is lowered, whereupon the material slides downon the surface of said bell and ortions impinge against the fi'ngers 9of my istributer. This deflects those portions of the charge toward thecenter of the furnace, while those portions which pass between thefingers continue in their travel and an actual outwardly toward thewalls of the furnace. A cross. section of an actual arrangement ofmaterials which have been charged with the use of my apparatus, is asshown in Fig. 1

plan View of the same is illustrated in Fig. 2.

I It will be noted from Fig. 2 that there are certain locations wherethe layers of material are of greater thinness than at others, and thistogether with the dome-like form of the deposits, forms cleavage orbreaking lines which will allow the stock to settle quietly andregularly, as the portions below it move downwardly.

The dotted lines in Fig. 1 represent the lower positions of the bells.The lower charging bell may be so adjusted as to be moved downwardly,more or less, than as indicated by dotted lines, in order to adjust thedistribution of the material.

A distinctive feature of my invention is the arrangement of thedistributer 8, provided with fingers 9, the upper portions of which aresubstantially vertical, while the lower portions are inclined towardeach other inwardly, leaving spaces between the adjacent fingers. Thisdistribution is made in sections so as to be easily placed and removed.I prefer to make the spaces between the fingers slightly wider than thewidth of the fingers themselves, but this may be varied within the scopeof my invention; and it should also be understood that the arrangementof these fingers is such that large particles of ore or coke cannot belodged between the fingers, but on account of the clearances rovided,will readily pass them and be distributed in the furnace.

Although I have shown and describedmy improvements in considerabledetail, I do not wish to be limited to the exact and specific detailsshown and described, but may use such substitutions, modifications orequivalents thereof, as are embraced within the scope of my invention,or as pointed out in the claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure byLetters Patent is 1. In a blast furnace charging apparatus adapted tooperate on substantially the entire charge, a bell and hopper, astationary distributer extending downwardly below said hopper providedwith a plurality of fingers, the lower portions of which extend inwardlytoward each other.

2. A blast furnace charging apparatus adapted to operate onsubstantially the entire charge, a bell and hopper, a stationarydistributer extending below the hopper and surrounding said bell, theupper portion of the distributer being substantially vertical andadapted to contact with the material of the charge and the lower portionprovided with a plurality of fingers, the lower ends of which areinclined inwardly toward each other.

3. In a blast furnace charging apparatus adapted to operate onsubstantially the entire charge, the combination with a bell and hopper,of a stationary I distributer below said hopper and surrounding thecharging bell, the upper portion of said distributer being continuous,the lower portion being provided with a plurality of fingers extendingbelow the same, the lower portions of said fingers being inclinedinwardly toward each other, the central portion between the fingersbeing unobstructed.

4. The combination with a blast furnace charging bell and hopper, of astationary distributer extending below said hopper, the upper portion ofthe distributer being continuous, integral fingers extending below saiddistributer, the upper portions of the fingers being substantiallyvertical and the lower portions inclining inwardly toward each other,and spaces between said fingers.

5. Blast furnace charging apparatus adapted to operate on substantiallythe entire charge, comprising a charging hopper, a hopper extension, acharging bell, arranged to direct the charged materials toward thefurnace wall and a series of depending deflectors secured to the hopperextension to extend below the charging bell around the periphery thereofand arranged to engage and deflect portions of the charged materialstoward the center of the furnace, the central portion between thefingersbeing unobdeflectors arranged to engage and arrest movement ofportions of the charged materials toward, while permitting movement ofotherportions toward the side wall of the furnace, and inclined shelveson said deflectors arranged to deflect some of the charged materialstoward the center of the furnace.

7. Blast furnace charging apparatus having means to direct the chargedownwardly and outwardly substantially in the form of a cone;v anddistributing means allowing spaced'portions of the charge to freelypass, to form an outer circle of heaps, and deflecting other portionsinwardly to form an inner ring of heaps.

8. Blast furnace charging apparatus having means to direct the chargedownwardly and outwardly substantially in the form of a cone; anddistributing means' allowing spaced portions of-the charge to freelypass, to form an outer circle of heaps, and deflecting other portionsinwardly to form an inner ring of heaps; whereby the-finer and coarserparticles are arranged in different areas.

5).; Blast furnace charging apparatus comprislng a charging hopper, ahopper extension, a charging bell arranged to direct the chargedmaterial toward the furnace wall and a series of depending deflectorssecured to the hopper extension to extend below the charging bell aroundthe periphery thereof and arranged to engage and deflect portions of thecharged materials toward the center of the furnace, the space within thehopper extension and deflectors and below the bell being substantiallyunobstructed.

10. A blast furnace charging apparatus comprising a charging bell andhopper adapted to receive and deliver an entire charge, astationarydistributer extending below said hopper and. adapted tosurround the lower portion of the bell when the same is lowered, theupper portion of the distributer being continuous and provided with aplurality of fingers spaced apart and extending below said upperportion, the upper parts of the fingers being substantially upright andthe lower portions thereof inclining inwardl toward the center of thefurnace, where y portions of the charge are discharged toward thefurnace wall, other portions toward the center and other portionsintermediate thereof, forming a plurality of columns separated by thecoarser materials to facilitate the smelting thereof.

In testimony whereof I hereto aflix my signature in the presence of twowitnesses.

' EDWIN E. SLICK.

' Witnesses:

A. DIx TrrrLE, PLUMA F. LONGSHORE.

